Leaving them out...

Way back many years ago when I was a kid I loved visiting the library. I'd checked out as many books as I could carry each and every time. That's something that hasn't changed over the years and I find homeschooling helps feed that book monster living inside me. I've noticed that K seems to love the library as much as I do and frequently enjoys settling down with a good book. That makes her mama very happy.

One of the curricula we use for school is My Father's World (which I cannot say enough good things about!!) and they encourage using the library to check out books relevant to what you're studying. They suggest putting them in a basket and have Book Basket Time when the kids just go and spend some time reading and going through the books. We use to have a basket, but lately we've just been putting them on a shelf. Consequently, I've noticed we don't seem to really spend as much time going through the books...and that is a shame.

So, the other day I had K pull them out of their "hiding place" and put them right smack in the middle of the dining room table. And we left them there! (leaving a random pile of books scattered across a table is not something I normally do!)

However, I noticed that when you leave them out....

...more of this goes on without you having to ask.

K would take her lunch out to the table and before I knew it her nose was buried in a book or two for the next hour. I don't mind that disruption to a school "schedule" at all.

In fact, she wound up reading a lot more than I expected.

Good informative books like these....

(although I don't think I needed a book to know that!)

Oh, yum.....not! K's review was both thumbs up.
She said it was about Japanese holidays and their traditional foods that they eat. It made her really start looking forward to Christmas! I'm going to have to go check out this book!

Lots of information in this book that pretty much enforced what we had just gone over. Don't you love it when that happens. Really helps them remember things when it's repeated in a different way.

She found this one interesting....and gruesome all rolled in one.

This one was a little rough, because she was reading it before we even talked about Japan's history. Reading about all the dynasties and trying to even GUESS how to say the Japanese names was a little frustrating. We'll review it after we've had a few more days under our belt.

K says this story was very good and then she proceeded to tell me all about it.
I won't spoil it for you.

(again...I don't think I needed a book to know this! I do love their titles, though!)
This series happens to be a GREAT series. K has enjoyed the three that she has read. The other one was You Wouldn't Want to Live in a Medieval Castle.

(note: I just went and looked at some more titles from this series...and now I'm going to go check the library system. Good summer reading material for my little history buff!)

By the way, K has been quiet for the past hour. I called her to my computer to ask her opinion on a few of these books. She walked out here carrying the above book. Yes, she's been laying on her bed reading. (this mama heart is really gonna burst!) She reviewed the individual books I shared and recommends them all. I think I'm going to have to continue just...

...leaving them out!

My gain...

The past few months K has found her interior design diva and redecorated her bedroom. I'm not talking about just slapping on a fresh color. This project called for the "WORKS". I'll be sharing that later this week...she did a great job!! One of the things to come out of her room was a small unfinished end table. We had intended to paint it to match her room, but never got around to it. She used it as her nightstand, but with the new design there was no longer room for it.

One day the little table was sitting in my kitchen area waiting for us to decide it's fate, when suddenly an idea popped into my head. I guess my interior design diva came out, as well. It's been transformed and is now doing exactly what I needed.

What do you think?

Who Knew?

I am not a gardener even if sometimes I pretend to be one. Pretending is very different than actually being a seasoned pro filled with all sorts of handy agricultural knowledge. I want to be that person, but my life is currently being filled with other sorts of knowledge and there is only so much I can take in at once! Maybe in my next season...for now, I'll just keep pretending.

Sometimes, at least on the surface, it is hard to tell the difference between a pro and a pretender if you just give a quick glance. Sure, if you look at my front garden you might be impressed with my Hostas the size of small economy cars. However, if you thought about it, you'd know a real gardener would have already divided those babies and spread the Hosta love. I'll admit it. This pretend gardener is a wienie when it comes to actually digging in and breaking up my beautiful plants. Next year, I will have no choice....as several of them are beginning to overtake my dogwood tree. At least this summer, I can sit on my porch and gaze upon them as if I really had ANYTHING to do with their beauty. (more pretending going on here....)

Where you would have really found me out was in my backyard, though. Last summer we had a successful vegetable garden and for the first time ever the beds were ready for some spring planting this year. So, I picked up some seeds at the local Lowes Hardware. There were seeds of the Pea, Lettuce, Radish and Carrot variety in my bag. Due to the weather being a little wacky and actually very cold late March, I didn't get them in when I had hoped. I have NO idea if they would have been fine or not....but again, I'm NOT a gardener.

Radishes were very successful. Almost too successful. I only like to eat a couple of radishes...and I found that really no one else here really likes them. So, maybe I didn't need to plant a hundred or so...but they were very good for the pretend gardener ego.

(Also, maybe I didn't really plant a hundred....or maybe I did.)

Carrots...well, WHO KNEW that they actually took so long to mature. I am going to have some success with them...but they are in the way of my summer planting and many of them are getting pulled early. Lesson learned for next year. It was exciting to pull them out and see little orange carrots....about the size of the skinniest little baby carrots in the baby carrot bag that you sometimes hold up and say, "AWW, look at this wittle baby one." Now, don't even PRETEND that you've never done that!

Peas are now producing and are actually pretty yummy and sweet. We got our first handful yesterday and by the looks of things I expect we will have many, many handfuls. I think I might have even gotten this one right on the first try. Today we had to tie a few of them up to clear the rest of the bed for beans, but they are actually looking good. Even a pretend gardener can get lucky every once in a while.

Now, about the lettuce. I can't say it wasn't successful. Hehe...but, I can say it was TOO successful. WHO KNEW that those little bitty seeds would produce more lettuce leaves then we could eat in the entire summer? K would go out and cut a bunch to fill a bowl for dinner. Before the week was over the spot was filled back in with new leaves. We've had some incredibly yummy salads this spring. Unfortunately for us, lettuce doesn't do well in the sweltering heat AND besides I needed the space for my beans. So, last night we pulled the lettuce.

By the way, if you're in the area and need some tomorrow....just let me know! I already invited my neighbor over last night and I told her to bring a big bowl. I still have about 6 gallon bags full in the fridge that need to be cleaned and eaten this week.

Guess what's on the menu this week!?

Just maybe I'll be a real gardener one of these days!!
Til then, I'm doing fine just pretending!!

Back to the routine....

Well, it's a week later then I had hoped. However, today we got right back into our routine. After taking an unexpected extended break due to sickness on both ends of my "scheduled" December break, I was so looking forward to hitting the books with K, getting back to regular cleaning chores and cooking. Sure, I cooked during the past 6 weeks. It just doesn't seem the same though, if I'm not trying to schedule it around math, spelling and laundry.

Now, while I must admit mentally it felt great to be back in the saddle, I just need to say....it's exhausting!! Morning came too early and it took hours before I really felt awake. Only to find myself ready for bed a few hours after that. Of course, I'm still up. My brain just went to bed.

K did terrific. Now, she may try to deny this, but deep down
she really does like school!

THE END

PS. Don't tell her I said that.

Diving right in...

With the holiday season just behind me and a nasty bug visiting the house, I was feeling a tad overwhelmed. I get that way when my little "non-routine" routine gets thrown out of whack. So, I found myself looking for some order to help me feel "right" again and my kitchen seemed to be the center of disorder. There was an incredible desire to attack and conquer the clutter. Possibly this was because I was desperately trying to stay out of all germ infested rooms and my kitchen was the safest! (there was no way I had allowed any sick person to touch anything in my kitchen) OR...maybe it had to do with the fact that I was determined we were going to eat healthier this year. That determination had me going to several different grocery stores and buying all sorts of healthy ingredients to make all the recipes I had found. With the hustle of the season, all those ingredients had then been stuffed into cabinets. Honestly, I had no clue as to what I had purchased, what I still needed, what was overstocked or what was running low. It was time to tackle the hot mess and I did so the only way I knew how and that was by diving right in, of course!

First step was to pull all food items out of the cabinets. I discovered that I had pasta in the tall black cabinet and in the corner cabinet. I had baking ingredients in three cabinets. I told you...a HOT mess!

These containers were all holding little bits of stuff past it's prime. They will all be placed back into commission once they go through a little clean up time.

It was time to get some containers labeled clearly, especially ones that I want to stay gluten free.

Here are some of the goodies I purchased on my shopping spree. I have high hopes for the yumminess that will be cooked up with these ingredients. These are all now listed on my inventory sheet that will help me know if I have what I need next time I discover a recipe.

I had no clue that I was running dangerously low on one of my staple items.
That is something you do not want to find out just as you are making a quick dinner!

I also discovered I was way overstocked on sugar. Since one of our goals is to cut the sugar consumption way down, I won't be needing to buy this for a while. Maybe we can make some sugar scrubs for bath time.


Having everything pulled out at once, allowed me to group similar items together.



Also, you want to take the time to consolidate if you can. I found two opened bottles of rice vinegar and it worked to just dump one into the other. I use it often enough, that I don't have to worry about it going bad.


Now, it was time to start putting things back. This cabinet will look even sharper when I put those containers above to work in here. Right now, I'm just happy that I know what is in here and that the items are grouped together.



This was a big relief to get this cabinet stocked and to know that all pasta is together once again!



Putting this cabinet back together was probably the most satisfying. I was able to really make sense of what went into here. Also, by grouping things together I was able to eliminate the need for taking up space in yet another cabinet.

Best part....I still have some growing room.

That time spent in the kitchen really did help me gain a sense of control. I was able to make menu plans and grocery lists knowing exactly what I was doing. As we get rid of processed stuff in the kitchen, my goal is to replace it with more whole ingredients. I love knowing exactly what goes into the food we are eating. It's also easier to control my diet and keep unwanted gluten and casein out.

I plan to take a look at my kitchen again in the summer to see how far I've come in my quest to get rid of junk in our diet. I'll be sure to share here.

Did you say...PLAN?

So, we had a lovely holiday break and I was gearing up to get back to the routine. Oh, the lovely routine!! Even though for years I swore I had no routine...I've lately discovered, that what seems like my lack of routine IS indeed a routine after all! <--We'll talk about that another day.

Anyway, the beginning of a new month is usually only mildly noticed around here. I happen to notice the day, because it means a new month of food budgeting and that means grocery shopping day! This is normally a very busy day with trips to not one, not two, but three OR four grocery stores. We restock our supplies and then shopping during the rest of the month tends to be a much milder affair.

Now, the beginning of January is a much bigger deal. It's a celebrated holiday. Well, throw that in with my need to restock the pantry and my overwhelming need to get back to routine....and you probably get a pretty chaotic looking picture. (maybe even experienced the same in your home!)

Mike was off on New Year's Eve and we went out for a nice lunch with some family and then off to grocery shop. We hit Whole Foods and Trader Joes. With the new year and my food intolerance, I've decided to buckle down and serve more whole foods, more raw foods, even some vegan meals...mixed in with our meaty meals to keep a balance. For us, 2011 is time to back away from processed foods and sugar overload. I've been researching and have found so many yummy recipes and blogs. So, I was set and ready to get rolling.

So, shop we did. However, the cabinets were already stuffed with holiday food and leftovers galore. Being that it was New Year's Eve and we had made some plans for the evening, there was really no time to sort, clean out, or put any thought into the kitchen. Everything was just put away...out of sight.

Monday is always a good day to get back to routine, right? For some reason, it seems like we always designate certain days and months to do things....and MONDAY is ALWAYS the day to start something. (anything... Just start it on a MONDAY, whatever you do!!)

I know the fridge is full of fresh produce, the cabinets are stocked with special ingredients to create new foods for us to enjoy....and somehow I'll weed out the bad, old stuff later. Come on, Monday. I am ready to steam, roast, soak, blend, and whatever else it takes to whip this family into total specimens of excellent health.

That's the plan! Oh...did I just say....PLAN?? Have I not learned?

Well, to HECK with the plans, early Monday morning....12:10 AM to be exact.....a nasty little bug decided it was time to rear it's ugly little head. It's claimed 3 out of 4 in this house, while leaving my fridge full of fresh produce just sitting there.

Tomorrow, I'll share what I did with my "free" time.

Funny thing about plans...

We ALL know that when you have PLANS, things are surely going to go awry. That pretty much sums up my long blogging break. No big catastrophic events took place. Nope... just a bunch of little glitches, wonky plans and one incredibly adorable baby that took my attention and time. (No, not MY baby...my GRAND baby!)

Since I last blogged, we've done some summer sight seeing, celebrated a few birthdays, enjoyed the harvest of our garden, started school back up, lost my computer and ALL my pictures(still hoping to recover those), said goodbye to too many friends that were moving out of state, enjoyed holidays with family and friends, further honed in on my food intolerance, tried many new recipes, and most importantly.....

spent MANY hours loving on this baby girl!

Isn't she precious?